As I read about the clear waters in Venice canals and the plethora of wildlife in the city, I visualize someone pushing the reset button on the world.

In the Veneto region of Italy, the waters in Venice canals are unusually clear. Wildlife is bustling around waterways, as ducks build nests. Even a wild boar running through the streets caught the attention of many.

Why? Unfortunately, because of COVID-19, a viral disease. This monster illness took thousands of human lives as it swept through Italy, but brought wildlife closer to the cities in its aftermath.

It’s hard to see the beauty of the clear waters of the Venetian canal, the emergence of wildlife, and the clear blue skies without remembering why it came to be this way.

It takes imagination sometimes to understand the silver lining of a horrible situation. So try this small exercise to understand why the waters of the Venice canal are such a powerful image.

Visualize the disease as a long dark tunnel, cold and unfeeling, now see that tiny light at the end growing larger day by day. The tiny light is there, I promise. As you get closer, the light starts to evenly illuminate the interior of the tunnel, shedding light on truths we may have forgotten when we were in the darkest part of our journey.

Now, think of the disease, yes, the horrid COVID19 as it rages throughout the world making us stay within our homes for months. For the wildlife, the disease has cleared a path for progress, but for us, it has devasted humanity. Some think our planet is healing itself.

How bad did it get?

If you watch the news, then you know that Italy took a massive hit from COVID-19, with over 15,000 deaths. This disease hit hard, driving all humanity inside their homes, only being allowed to walk their dogs and get food when needed. Although Venice, the Veneto region, wasn’t hit the hardest, it still took a heavy toll.

The Lombardy region took the worst of the virus hit but is now reaching a plateau. The new laws are following closely with the rules set in South Korea and Singapore. It seems their numbers are gradually but consistently dropping.

Waters in Venice canals give us hope

Looking at the clear waters of the Venice Canals gives us hope. We have, for a long time, thought of ourselves as the rulers of this planet.

But as we are driven into our homes to quarantine, ducks, fish, birds, and all sorts of wildlife are coming out into the open. The gondolas are no longer taking tourists on romantic trips down the canal. The cruise ships are no longer welcome in the harbors. We can see these deaths as tragedies, and yes, they are, but we can also see these things as a reset for humanity.

I don’t believe that things should go back to normal once this is over either. I think we should change as humans as we enjoy leaving our homes again.

Just take a look outside. There are fewer cars, boats, and other transportation clouding the air with nasty emissions. There are fewer people littering and leaving their wastes on the streets. As the mud settles on the bottom of the canal in Venice, and the clear waters reveal the beautiful fish and the algae swaying in the current, we can have hope.

We will get through this. So, let’s do some serious thinking about our future humanity. Either someone has pressed the reset button or is trying to teach us a valuable lesson.

Sherrie Hurd is a professional writer and artist with over 20 years of experience. She is an advocate for mental health awareness and nutrition. Sherrie studied Psychology, Journalism, and Fine Arts at Memphis College of Arts and received an Associate’s degree in Marketing from Northeast Mississippi College.